The program is open internationally to creatives age 30 and under who have been working for at least two years, full-time or freelance. Entrants can submit a combination of professional and personal work in the field(s) of graphic design, photography, illustration, advertising, art direction, environmental design, film, animation, motion graphics, interactive design, typography, architecture, copywriting, product design, package design, product design, fashion design, furniture design, interior design, sound design or industrial design.

Who can Enter?

Entrants must be 30 years of age or younger on the day entries open (March 13, 2012) and must have been working professionally for at least 2 years (both full-time and freelance work qualify). We will require a proof of age in the form of a Passport, State ID or drivers license from all entrants.

If you are a student with two years of the working life under your belt, you are also eligible to enter. Previous ADC Young Guns entrants ARE eligible to enter, but past ADC Young Guns winners are NOT eligible to enter subsequent cycles of the competition.

Submit:

6-10 pieces of professional and personal work. A maximum of half of your pieces submitted can be personal work. The rest must be professional, published work. Unpublished and client-rejected spec work counts as personal work.

Work entered does not need to have been created in a particular year - entries will be judged as a portfolio of work. Submissions need not conform to any specific media categories. Your submitted portfolio may feature work in one medium or several.

Entry Fees:

EARLY BIRD DEADLINE: APRIL 17, 2012, 11:59 PM EST: $99 USD.REGULAR DEADLINE: MAY 8, 2012, 11:59 PM EST: $135 USD.Late entries will be accepted through May 22, 2012, 11:59 PM EST, but will incur a late fee of $40 USD in addition to the regular entry fee of $135.

Prize

Every fall, a new class of ADC Young Guns is announced; winners are awarded the ADC Young Guns Cube, re-designed exclusively for each year’s class. Their best work is published in the ADC Young Guns Annual and is showcased in an exhibition at ADC Gallery. The exhibition also travels in digital and print form to various international venues, and is added to ADC’s permanent collection online.

In addition, each winner receives one year of free membership to the ADC and becomes part of the ADC Young Guns Network. ADC Young Guns are regularly featured in ADC events, the Young Guns shop, the Young Guns blog and twitter feed, and are eligible for an assortment of career-boosting benefits from ADC Young Guns sponsors.

Broadcast/Video:
Submit 1 quicktime per entry. For campaigns, edit spots together and include 1 second of black between each.
Compress using H.264 codec to 640x480
Maximum Quicktime size: 5MB

If you cannot meet these size requirements, please upload a screen shot of your video (as a JPEG) and provide a URL where the jury can watch it (Vimeo or YouTube is okay) Make sure the video loads quickly and that it plays in the browser and does NOT prompt the user for a download.